


Finding A Way

by dietcokeenthusiast



Category: Fire Emblem: If | Fire Emblem: Fates
Genre: Canon-Typical Violence, Corhajat, F/F, Some Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-02-28
Updated: 2016-03-12
Packaged: 2018-05-23 16:42:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 8,086
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6122856
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dietcokeenthusiast/pseuds/dietcokeenthusiast
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Corrin's always tried to give Rhajat everything she wanted. So when she starts thinking that she might want to start a family, Corrin tries to think how they could make it happen.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> REALLY wanted to try to get one more Fire Emblem fic at least started for Femslash February, so here we are! I thought it was a bit of a bummer how pairing up F!Corrin and Rhajat basically locked you out of being able to have a child, so I decided to write something about how it could possibly happen. Hope you all enjoy! :)

Jakob opened the door and greeted the two women with a smile. "Ah, the mistresses! Please, do come in."

Corrin returned the smile. "Thank you, Jakob!" Giving Rhajat's hand a squeeze, she lead her in to Jacob's quarters. She never ceased to be impressed with how clean Jakob kept things, or his skills at decoration. She'd considered letting Jakob work over her quarters, but it likely would have meant Rhajat getting rid of her "found" bone collection.

Rinkah and Dwyer were sitting at the table as they approached. Making a frustrated noise, Jakob cuffed Dwyer on the side of his head, earning a chuckle from Rinkah. "Dwyer! We have company. Stand up, and pull their chairs out for them."

Grumbling, Dwyer got up from his seat, and looked over at the couple. "Oh, Corrin and Rhajat. Hey. Sorry, I was just taking it easy," he smiled sheepishly, pulling out two chairs for them.

"Gods, when are you _not_ taking it easy," Jakob sighed.

Rinkah got up to place her hand on his shoulder. "Come on, Jakob. He's helping them out now, isn't he?"

"Yeah, dad, I am," Dwyer added. "Would either of you like some coffee?"

Jakob scoffed. "No, Dwyer, I'm going to be making tea for them."

"Well, I guess that's okay, but I thought you wanted them to enjoy themselves," Dwyer smirked.

"How _dare_ you speak to your father that way! Especially in front of our gu-"

"Oh, would you two shut up already?" Rinkah raised her voice, stepping between them. "Maybe we should just ask them what the hell they want?"

Corrin exchanged a look with Rhajat. The evening was certainly off to an interesting start. "Thanks, Rinkah. Some tea would be lovely, Jakob."

"I'll have coffee," Rhajat added. "Dark roast, black."

Jakob's smile returned to his face, and nodded. "Right away, mistress!"

Dwyer followed his father over to the kitchen area, the two of them fighting for space. Rinkah groaned. "Sorry about those two. They're still working on not being complete idiots to each other. How've you two been?"

"We've been well," Corrin replied, taking a seat. "Rhaj's been working with her mom on helping the villagers stay healthy. She actually developed a cure for a plague that infected one of the villages!"

Rhajat blushed a bit at the mention of it. "Lots of people get sick during war, and I wanted to help. I had to actually use a little bit of light magic, but it worked. "  
  
Rinkah smiled. "Good! Glad you're not _all_ creepy."

Rhajat giggled. A few moments later, Jakob and Dwyer returned with their drinks. Corrin took a long sip; he always made the most exquisite tea.

"So, mistress, to what do I owe the pleasure?" Jakob asked.

Rinkah nodded. "Not that we mind the occasional visit, but it sounded like there was something you wanted to ask."

Corrin heard Rhajat take in a deep breath, and felt Rhajat's fingers interlace with her own. She was nervous. Corrin couldn't really blame her; she was anxious herself. Taking another long drink of tea, she finally spoke. "Yes, there is something we wanted to ask you. It's actually a request."

"Oh?" Jakob inquired. "Whatever it is, I am certain we can fulfill it for you!"

"Well, maybe don't answer that yet," Corrin chuckled uneasily. "It's a pretty big request."

"I'm still certain that it can be done. You need only ask."

Corrin took a few deep breaths. She had gone over the conversation so many times with Rhajat before tonight. Why exactly was it so hard now? Regardless, she knew that it was now or never. "Jakob, Rinkah… Rhajat and I have been wanting to start a family of our own. We know this is a big thing to ask, but we want to know if you'd consider having a child for us. Like surrogates."

\--

Rhajat sighed. “You know, sometimes I miss being a mother.”  
  
Corrin looked over at Rhajat with a puzzled look. She wasn’t sure if Rhajat’s time in the deeprealm was more interesting than she previously thought, or if she was just being odd. Either way, a “romantic” picnic in a graveyard hardly seemed like the type of occasion to start thinking of motherhood.

Corrin coughed. “Um… what do you mean by that?”

Rhajat gazed dreamily off into the distance. “I miss my children. I had worked so hard on perfecting my summoning spells, and then they were ripped from my loving embrace.”

Corrin blinked. “Rhajat, love?”

“Yeah?”

“You know that those ‘children’ were faceless, right? The soulless monsters the Nohrians summoned who’ve been trying to kill us for gods know how long now?”

“Well, I summoned these ones. Not Nohr. So it’s completely different.”

“I know that, love. I also know that they tried to kill you. They actually tried to kill all of us, and we had to come in and save you. We all kind of decided that the whole thing was a really bad idea.”

Rhajat giggled, and leaned in to Corrin. Her perfume was at once alluring and overpowering. _Just like her_. “I remember. I remember I promised you I was never going to let you leave my sight. It was such a wonderful day.”

Corrin sighed. “Rhaj, I feel like you might be missing the point here. I’m of course glad that I found yo-“ Rhajat interrupted her with a kiss, leaving Corrin flustered, much Rhajat’s delight. “Oh, um, so… right. As nice as it was to find you, I could have done without the part where the faceless try to murder us. I’m not sure why you’d want to remember those ‘kids’ fondly.”

Rhajat pouted. “Hmph. Okay, maybe they weren’t the best behaved children. They were still mine, though.”

Corrin fought both the urge to laugh and to stare at her in abject terror. Instead, she just decided to pull Rhajat closer, her fingers tracing lazy circles on her shoulder. “May I ask what brought this on? It seems a bit odd to bring up on our picnic.”

Rhajat didn’t respond, instead biting down on her thumbnail. Corrin pressed a kiss to her temple, and squeezed her tighter. “You know you don’t need to keep anything from me, right? I promise I won’t laugh or run away.

A thin smile passed Rhajat’s lips at the contact, but she was still hesitant. Corrin knew it was going to take more than that. “I have ways of making you talk, you know,” Corrin lowered her voice as her fingertips drifted down Rhajat’s sides, coming to a rest on either side of her tummy. Rhajat groaned, and stiffened. “What was that? I haven’t even gotten started yet.”

“Don’t you dare even think about it,” Rhajat warned.

“Think about what? I wasn’t thinking about… oops!” dragged her fingertips across Rhajat’s stomach, making her flinch. “Sorry, my hand slipped.”

“Corrin…”

“It’d be a shame if it happened again. Like, oh, I don’t know… this!” With that, Corrin yanked Rhajat onto her lap and was tickling her mercilessly. Rhajat squirmed and giggled, kicking over their bottle of sake and shouting curses whenever she was able to catch her breath. “We know how this ends, Rhaj!”

“Never!” she squealed, desperately struggling against Corrin’s grasp. By now Corrin was laughing with her, but still refused to let up. “Fine! I’ll talk! I’ll talk,” she forced out between peals of laughter.

Finally stopping her onslaught, Corrin eased Rhajat back so that she was leaning into her, brushing her hair away to plant a kiss on her cheek. “I win.”

“This time,” Rhajat grumbled, trying her best to sound angry. “And you promise not to get scared, or angry, or laugh at me?”

“I couldn’t even if I wanted to,” Corrin replied softly, kissing Rhajat’s cheek again. She had completely relaxed into Corrin’s arms.

Rhajat nodded, and began. “I know the faceless were a really bad idea. I also know they weren’t really my children. Even if I brought them to life, it’s not like I could actually look after them, teach them the dark arts, or see them grow up. They’re horrible monsters after all. Still, they were mine. Life or unlife, they were my responsibility.”

Corrin nodded. “I can see where you’re coming from. Well, sort of.”

“I still think about them sometimes, though, because even if I would _never_ think of letting you go,” Rhajat hesitated for a moment, and gripped Corrin’s hand tightly. “I see the families some of the others have, and sometimes I wish that could be us.”

Corrin leaned her head in, and gently urged Rhajat to turn to look at her. “Are you saying that you want to have kids, Rhajat?”

Rhajat sighed. “Maybe? I’ve thought about it, but that’s it. It’s not as though we can have them ourselves. I mean, we can always do the trying part…” Rhajat winked. Corrin felt her face starting to flush.

“…but nothing’s going to come of it.”

Rhajat shook her head. “There’s no magic, dark or light that I can use that would make it work. An actual child, I mean. Even if I could stomach the idea of one of us with someone else just for this, and I can’t, there’s no one around I’d want to touch _either_ of us.” She shuddered.

Corrin had to admit she was with Rhajat there. When it came to the men in her forces, if she wasn’t related to them she had absolutely no interest in anything beyond friendship with them. The only person she ever wanted to touch, ever wanted to be with was her Rhaj. Just the thought was enough to make her hug Rhaj protectively.

Words, though? She was at a loss for those. Corrin had no idea what she could possibly say to Rhajat. While she wasn’t opposed to the idea of children at all, she had never given it much thought since she knew the two of them couldn’t have them together. It was clear it had been on Rhajat’s mind for some time though, and the worst part was she had no clue what she could say to reassure her, or a what possible solution to their problem could be

At least, until an idea came to her.

\---

For a few moments, Jakob and Rinkah just stared, unable to formulate a response. There was a tightness growing in Corrin’s chest that was nearly overwhelming.Finally, Jakob cleared his throat. "Mistress, I um, well, I am truly flattered you would be willing to grace me with such an honor. I'm just not certain what to say. I of course want to serve you in any way I can, but-"

"Jakob, don't even think of it like that," Corrin interjected. "I'm not asking you because you're my butler. I'm asking because I trust you both. Rinkah, you were one of the first friends I made when I came to Hoshido, even though you had absolutely no reason to trust me."

Rinkah laughed. "It wasn't like I had a choice. You wouldn't leave me the hell alone."

"I suppose I'm just persistent," Corrin grinned. "And you, Jakob, you've been right by my side since I was a little girl. I know sometimes you forget this, but you're not a servant. You're a friend."

Jakob beamed. "I'm so very grateful to be considered as such."

"You two are okay," Rhajat added. "You've both been so nice to me since Corrin and I got together."

"Well, of course we are," Jakob responded. "You might have some rather unfortunate habits, but you make the mistress happy. That's all we could ask for. Still, to the subject at hand, I must say I'm a bit surprised you are asking Rinkah and I. As I'm sure you can see, my children tend to not live up to their breeding."

Dwyer sighed. "I'm right here, dad."

"Yes, you are here. When you should be reflling the cups of these ladies."

"Jakob, Dwyer's a perfectly nice young man," Corrin spoke, a smug grin spreading across Dwyer's face. "That doesn't scare us."

"Yes, Jakob, and it shouldn't." Rinkah added, giving a look to Jakob that let him clearly know that part of the discussion was over. "But look, to get back to what you're asking us to do, I'm just as honored as Jakob, but you're asking us for something pretty big here. You’re asking us to not get attached to a kid we’d have for you, and I damn near went crazy when I was pregnant with this one," Rinkah gestured to Dwyer.

"But dear, didn't I make you as comfortable as I could?" Jakob asked. "You always had a made bed, hot tea, a home cooked meal… surely it wasn't that bad?"

"I know you did your best Jakob, and it was nice to have some quality time to ourselves," Rinkah reassured him, giving his shoulder a squeeze. Dwyer looked away awkwardly. "Still, I had to stay off the front lines for months! It drove me crazy knowing I rusty I was getting and how much action I was missing."

Jakob nodded. "Yes, of course, my dear."

"We'd help, you know," Corrin reassured. "I could maybe think of some way you could still train while you were at home." She felt Rhajat's hand grip hers more tightly. It was as though she already knew how this was going to end.

"I appreciate it, but I'm sorry, Corrin. You too, Rhajat. I couldn't do it again."

Corrin's heart sank as she took a glance over at Rhajat. Her expression was largely unchanged, but she was still able to see the disappointment in her eyes. "It's okay," Rhajat finally spoke. "I understand. It was probably a really weird request."

Jakob shook his head. "Madam, it was hardly a weird request, as you call it. You're simply looking to start a family of your own. One without soulless, murderous monsters. There's no shame in examining your options."

"For what it's worth, I think you'd be the best moms." Dwyer gulped as Rinkah shot him a look. "Well, the second best moms."

The pair giggled. "I appreciate that, Dwyer," Corrin smiled. "I don't suppose I could trouble you for refills?"

"Of course you can!" Jakob interjected, answering on Dwyer's behalf, before turning to scold him. "Well, don't just stand there like a lout, son! Fix their drinks!"

\--

Things were quiet as the couple arrived back at Corrin's quarters. They weren't sure who else to ask, or who they even could ask. It would feel awkward to approach either of their families about the issue, and Jakob and Rinkah were a couple they both trusted deeply. If even they said no, it certainly wasn't looking good for them.

After sitting down on the bed, the quiet still hanging over them like a cloud, Rhajat was the first to break the silence. “It’s okay. Children were just a thought. I still have you, and that still makes me happy,” she smiled. “I’d probably be too weird to be a good mother, anyways.”

Corrin returned the smile, playing with Rhajat’s hair. “I promise if I ever think of a way for us to have children, I’ll let you know. And for the record? You’d make a great mom. It’s me they’d have to worry about.”

Rhajat giggled. Corrin could listen to that sound all day and never tire of it. “You’d have to learn to cook. I wouldn’t do everything.”

Corrin laughed. “Like I said, it’s me they’d have to worry about. I’d poison them before they could learn to walk!”

Rhajat snorted, and threw her arms around Corrin’s neck, trying to steady herself from her own laughter. It took her minutes to calm herself down. Corrin chuckled softly; she didn’t think it was all that funny.

Her thoughts were then interrupted by the sensation of Rhajat’s lips against her neck. Then her teeth. Corrin shivered as heat began to pool in her belly. The sensation only got stronger as Rhajat kissed up her neck. She let a soft moan escape when Rhajat finally got to her ear, slowly dragging her teeth over Corrin’s earlobe.

“We can still play like we're trying,” Rhajat whispered. Corrin squirmed as the warm breath tickled her ear. “We can try, and try, and try,” Rhajat continued, punctuating each “try” with a playful nip.

Corrin was powerless to resist, and had absolutely no desire to. As she let Rhajat lower her down to the bed, the two were able to put their predicament aside, if only until the morning.


	2. Out of the Fire

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Corrin and Rhajat need to put their family worries on hold when they receive word of Nohrians attacking a village, but in the aftermath of the battle, Corrin comes across an unexpected blessing.

When Corrin woke up, she immediately felt the emptiness next to her in bed. Sitting up quickly, she looked around the room and felt more relieved than she would want to admit when she saw Rhajat sitting on the end of the bed.

“Mmm… you’re up early,” Corrin mumbled, fumbling for her eyepatch.

Rhajat smiled. “It’s been a while since I watched you sleep. You go to bed too early.”

Corrin chuckled, and moved to sit beside Rhajat, resting her head on her shoulder. “I’m sorry that I don’t stay up until three in the morning reading about demons or the undead, or whatever creepy thing you’ve taken an interest in that night.”

Rhajat smiled suggestively. “I wasn’t reading last night. Don’t you remember?”

Corrin felt herself turn a bit red. She hated how easy it was for Rhajat to get her flustered. “Well yes, I, um, do remember.” Corrin cleared her throat. “You were _amazing_ by the way.”

Rhajat giggled, and kissed Corrin’s forehead. “It’s nice to know I can drive you at least a bit as crazy as you drive me.”

“Trust me, Rhaj, it was more than just a bit,” Corrin purred and nuzzled into Rhajat’s neck. Now it was her turn to start getting flushed. “Did you sleep well after, love?”

Rhajat shook her head. “I was thinking,”

Corrin lifted up her head and turned to face her. “About what?”

“I know I had mentioned that there wasn’t any magic that we could use to help us with our problem. Then I remembered a book about fertility rituals, and then I thought maybe if I used some dark magic with the rituals just for women, we could make it work.”

Corrin’s expression went blank. “I understand where you’re coming from love, but I’m not sure some experimental ritual is the best way to go about things. The last time you did one of these “experiments”, you ended up giving everyone chicken pox.”

“You all lived, didn’t you?” Rhajat grumbled. “Besides, this one’s easy. I just need some candles, some salt, some carved stones, and a bit of ox’s blood, and a full moon. There should be one a few days from now.”

Corrin smiled nervously. “Are you sure this is a good idea? Maybe we should take some more time and think about what our options are before any more strange rituals.”

Rhajat smirked. “I haven’t even gotten to the best part, yet. It also involves-“

_Knock._

Hurriedly throwing the blanket over herself and Rhajat, Corrin called for whoever was at the door to come in. It was Jakob.

“Mistresses, I hope I’m not interrupting anything, but I have some very urgent news.”

Rhajat sighed in exasperation. Corrin tried not to look too relieved. “Not at all. What is it?”

“We’ve just received word of Nohrians attacking a village. No doubt the scoundrels are trying to draw us in to a conflict by targeting civilians. They’re likely to be quite well-armed if they’re expecting us.”

Anger started to fill Corrin. As much as she wanted peace with her former homeland, she loathed how quick they were to resort to such horrid tactics. Whether it was part of their plan or not, though, they _needed_ to be stopped.

“Jakob, get my armor and Rhajat’s scrolls ready. If they’re expecting us, let’s not disappoint them.”

\--

The fireball knocked Corrin off her feet, halting her charge. Wasn’t the worst blow she had, but she was probably going to have some new burn marks and a ruined cape to show for it. Grunting, she got up to her feet, only to see the enemy sorcerer conjuring yet another fireball. Closing her eyes and bracing for impact, Rhajat stepped in, putting up a barrier that absorbed the flame. She exchanged a glance with Rhajat, and then put her focus entirely on the enemy spellcaster. That barrier was all the opportunity she needed.

Getting a running start, Corrin leapt into the air, raising Yato high before bringing the blade down, driving it cleanly through the sorcerer, killing him instantly. She turned around to see Rhajat applauding, a wide grin spread across her face. That was the last of the Nohrians here.

Sliding the blade back into the scabbard, Corrin took a moment to survey the village; black smoke choked the sky as houses burned. The surviving villagers had huddled behind crates, barrels, anything they could find to provide some sort of cover from the Nohrian onslaught, or had been searching the bodies in the streets, desperately hoping not to find one of their loved ones. Corrin muttered curses under her breath; one for the Nohrians who had taken to slaughtering innocent bystanders in the hopes of breaking the Hoshidans’ spirits, one for her “father” who had commanded her former countrymen to do it on pain of death, and one for herself for not being able to stop this attack sooner.

Rhajat, seeming to sense Corrin’s anger, placed a hand on her back reassuringly. “We did all we could, Corrin. We made them pay for it.”

“I know,” Corrin sighed. “I’m just tired of still seeing it happen. No one should have to live in fear of this happening to them, or their families.”

“They won’t. Not by the time we finish with them.”

Corrin nodded, and set about making note of as many of the townspeople as she could as she made her way to the village square to meet up with her forces. She breathed a sigh of relief when she saw that everyone was safe an accounted for. She had lost none of the soliders under her command so far, and didn’t intend to start losing them now.

Approaching her forces, she wasted no time in addressing them. “Good work, everyone, but we’re not finished yet. The enemy’s done for, but we need to make sure we get the survivors to safety as quickly as possible. Sakura, Dwyer, tend to the wounded, and bring them to the village gate. Rhajat, you’re protecting them.”

The three of them nodded, and immediately started off to look for anyone who needed their help. “Hinoka, you’re patrolling the skies. If you see any Nohrian reinforcements coming, let us know, and we’ll be waiting for them. Takumi, you’re our eyes on the ground. Jakob, any villagers that can get out on their own power, protect them on their way to the village gate. Rinkah, gather any dead you find for an honorable burial. Let’s get going.”

As the others acknowledged the orders and set off to carry them out, Corrin made her way between the houses of the villages, checking to see if there was anyone in hiding, friend or foe. She paused for a moment to wipe the sweat from her brow. The heat from the burning buildings was getting tougher and tougher to bear, and made her burns from earlier sting even worse, but she had a job to do. She wasn’t going to leave anyone to fend for themselves just because she got uncomfortable.

After about fifteen minutes of searching, she was becoming certain that everyone who could be helped was being helped. She was thankful she could trust her friends and kin so readily with whatever needed to be done. Looking upwards, she caught a glimpse of Hinoka passing overhead, flashing a thumbs up to show that the village was clear of enemies.

It wasn’t until she made her way towards the gate that she heard it. It was faint over the crackling of the fires, but the shrill cry was unmistakeable. Someone was caught in one of the buildings.

Listening closely for the source of the cry, Corrin dashed to her right, finding a home which had been almost half consumed by the flames. The cries were growing louder and louder _This has to be the one_. Unbuckling her armor plates and taking a deep breath, she charged up to the door, kicking it down. She grunted in pain as the splinters dug into her bare feet, but pressed onward. She needed to ensure whoever it was, they got to safety.

The smoke in the house was nearly overpowering. Still holding her breath, she scanned the entryway and listened carefully for more cries. _Left._ Running down the hallway, she came to two rooms. One completely consumed by fire, the other blocked by a fallen beam. Unable to hold her breath any longer, she coughed, the smoke being taken into her lungs. Grabbing Yato tightly, she swung at the beam with all the strength she could manage, splitting the beam in two. She then used the sword to push the chunks of burning wood out of her way, but still cried out in pain as her arms were burned by the embers as she tried to squeeze through.

Wheezing, she came to the realization that this was a child’s room. Small toys had nearly been reduced to ashes, the bed flattened from a partial collapse of the roof. On the floor, screaming and choking, was a child who had to be no older than one year old, messy black hair framing their face. Several questions raced through Corrin’s mind. _Where are the child’s parents? Were they killed? Did they abandon their child to save themselves? Is it too late for me to get this child to safety?_ Shaking her head, Corrin realized the answers to those questions could come later. For now, she needed to get them out, and fast.

Corrin grabbed the child, holding it as close to her as she could manage, and ran out of the burning home as quickly as she could. As she made her way out, she gasped desperately for air, sucking in deep breaths and collapsing to her knees. Corrin turned her head and gagged. She felt as though she might vomit at any moment. She felt as though she had been in the second worst battle of her life. The child still clung tight to her, wailing loudly into the night.

Once she felt certain she could breathe again, she sat down on the ground, holding the child close to her. She whispered gentle reassurances, and gently stroked the infant’s back. She had no food, no toys, and no idea where the baby’s parents might be, no idea what healing they might need, but she had hoped if nothing else, she could provide them some comfort. Amazingly, it seemed to work. The baby hadn’t completely calmed down, but had stopped screaming at the very least.

She heard a familiar voice call out to her. “Big sister?”

Not wanting to risk upsetting the child, Corrin raised her hand, gesturing Sakura over. Dwyer followed close behind, while Rhajat had run up to her wife as quickly as she could.

“Well hello, Corrin,” Rhajat smirked, noticing Corin was only dressed in her leathers. “Normally you let me take care of that armor for you.”

Corrin laughed softly, and started coughing. “Usually, love. Armor plates aren’t the best thing to wear in a burning building, though.”

Rhajat cocked an eyebrow. “Burning building? What did you-“ She stopped mid-sentence as she finally took notice of the baby in Corrin’s arms. For a moment, she was at a loss for words, simply staring at the two of them. “Corrin… is that..?”

Corrin nodded. “I found the little one in this home. Or what’s left of it rather,” she gestured behind her with a tilt of her head. “I didn’t find any bodies inside, or around the home. Looks like their parents are still missing.”

Biting on her fingernails, Rhajat just nodded in response. Sakura had come up to Corrin now, and knelt down beside her to give a hug when she noticed the baby, and the burn marks on Corrin’s arms.

“Ah! Big sister, are you okay? What did you do to yourself? You need to have someone look at those burns right away.”

Corrin coughed. “I’ll be fine, Sakura. You can bandage me up later. It’s the child I’m worried about,” she explained, handing the baby off to Sakura. “I don’t know how long they were in there before I got to them, but it must have been a while.”

Sakura nodded. “Okay, but at least let Dwyer look after you while I see the baby? You shouldn’t overdo it!” Turning her attention to the infant, she immediately starting cooing as she examined them, earning giggles from the baby. Corrin smiled, but noticed that Rhajat hadn’t taken her eyes off the child, staring the entire time.

Her thoughts were interrupted by Dwyer. “Oh, hey Corrin, must have been some fighting you were doing,” he commented, examining the burns on her arms.

Corrin winced a bit as the healing magic started to regenerate her skin. The feeling never got less strange, no matter how often she underwent the procedure. “This wasn’t the fighting, actually. Not entirely, anyways. It was all the little one,” Corrin gestured over to the child.

“…The kids are burning people? Glad I stay out of it.”

Corrin chuckled. “Thanks for the healing, Dwyer.”

Dwyer smiled weakly, and finished applying the last bandage. “Don’t mention it.”

Standing up, Corrin moved up beside Rhajat, wrapping an arm around her waist. She felt her Rhaj lean into the touch, and plant a quick kiss over one of her bandages, but she still didn’t look away from Sakura tending to the child. Apparently the child was fine after all, laughing and squealing as Sakura tickled their feet.

“Our little sister’s a natural, huh?”

Rhajat nodded. “Definitely.”

Corrin thought carefully about her next words. She had been considering some things, but didn’t want to end up giving Rhajat false hope. Would it be kinder to just speak up, or not say anything about what she was thinking?

Holding her quietly for a few minutes more, Corrin tilted Rhajat’s head up. “So, we still need to find this child’s parents. If they’re still alive, that is, or anywhere to be found.

Rhajat nodded again. “I know.”

“We’d have to be prepared for the possibility that they might turn up later looking for their baby.”

“Well, yeah,” Rhajat mumbled. “What are you telling me this for?”

Corrin smiled softly. “Well, Rhaj, if we can’t find the baby’s family tonight, they’re going to need someone to look after them until we can organize more of a search. I had thought that well, maybe we could-“

Rhajat cut her off, yanking her head down into a kiss, hands firmly planted on either side of her face. When she pulled back, she was staring into Corrin’s eyes, her face wearing the same infatuated smile as the first time they were around each other. “Have I told you lately that I love you?”

Corrin giggled, and rested her forehead against Rhajat’s. “I got the impression, Rhaj. And I love you too.”

“Good,” Rhajat replied with a grin, the two of them turning to look over at Sakura. She was standing up now, cradling the sleeping baby in her arms.

“She’s… she’s okay!” She smiled. “A bit of sleep and fresh air, and she should be just fine.”

Corrin nodded, and placed a hand on Sakura’s shoulder. “Thanks, sister! So, Rhaj and I were actually wondering if there’s something we can do to help out. If this little one’s family isn’t with the survivors, they’ll need a place to stay. We thought maybe… we could look after them?”

A bad feeling started forming in the pit of Corrin’s stomach when a look of shock appeared on Sakura’s face, but faded just as fast once she started smiling. “Oh! Of course! I bet you and Rhajat would do a really great job,” she smiled, carefully holding out the baby. “D-did you want to hold him?”

“Oh? Him?” Corrin asked.

Sakura nodded. “That’s right!”

Turning to Rhajat, she gestured for her to take the baby. Awestruck, Rhajat cautiously took the baby from Sakura’s hands, cradling her against her chest. Rhajat said nothing; just stared at the child, gently rocking him back and forth in her arms.

A few moments later, the child had awoken and starting crying loudly. Corrin bit her tongue, trying desperately not to laugh as a panicked Rhajat tried to reassure the child, rocking him harder, then softer, then harder again, muttering curses under her breath. This was going to be an interesting experience.


	3. A Family

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rhajat and Corrin do their best to look after the baby they rescued for a village raid. Meanwhile, a discovery Corrin makes leads to big happenings for the couple.

Corrin’s eye was red from lack of sleep when she was awoken once again by the baby’s shrieking. She had gotten… not so much used to it, as much as she accepted its inevitability.

“It’s your turn,” Rhajat mumbled into Corrin’s chest, loosening her grip around her.

Corrin shook her head. “I distinctly remember it being your turn.”

Rhajat looked up at her. “I was up the second time. This is the third time. That makes it your turn.”

Corrin sighed. As much as she hated to admit it, Rhajat was right. Reluctantly removing herself from the warmth of the bed and Rhajat’s cuddling, she walked over to the crib. The rescued infant was crying loudly. Sniffing the baby, it became very obvious why he was upset.

This was the part Corrin liked the least.

Trying her best to breathe through her mouth and not look any more than she needed to, she changed and cleaned the baby, putting the old cloth diaper into the hamper. She almost felt sorry for Jakob, knowing the next laundry day was around the corner. At least until she remembered that it was better him than her.

Cradling the child in her arms, Corrin kissed the top of his head and rocked him back and forth, the crying soon giving way to giggles. Grinning, she started to tickle his belly, drawing even more laughter from the baby. Reflecting on it, Corrin decided when he wasn’t screaming or making a mess, he was actually quite cute. She might even go so far as to say that he was precious. Since he was in a playful mood anyways, Corrin tossed him up into the air. The baby squealed in delight as he went up and down, always safe in Corrin’s arms.

That was the part Corrin liked best.

“You’ve got a lot of energy, don’t you, little one?” Corrin smiled as she brought the infant closer to nuzzle noses with him.

“Corrin?” Rhajat called sleepily from bed. “How is he?”

“He’s fine. Just needed to be changed,” Corrin replied. “I think he’s going to need to tire himself out before he goes to sleep again, though.

A moment of silence passed. “He still wants to play with you? This late?”

“I’m not sure that’s a consideration, Rhaj. Babies don’t make those kinds of decisions. They just sort of… are.”

There was a pause as Rhajat stumbled out of bed. “Do you think I could play with him for a bit?”

“Of course, love,” Corrin smiled, passing the baby over to Rhajat. “He really likes it when you toss him in the air.”

“Like this?” Rhajat threw the baby in the air and caught him, the catch noticeably harder than when Corrin caught him.

“Gentler, Rhaj. You want to ease him down a bit when you catch him.”

Rhajat nodded, and broke out into a grin when she was able to do it properly her very next try, earning a giggle from the boy. She tried it a few more times, the child enjoying himself more and more as she was able to get better at catching the baby softly. Corrin couldn’t help but grin at the sight.

Rhajat giggled and hugged the baby closer to her. “I did It right! I actually-“

It was then the child decided to start screaming and crying again. Rhajat, visibly frustrated, tried to comfort the child, but was unsuccessful. Finally, she handed him back over to Corrin. A minute of rocking later, and the baby’s crying had subsided yet again.

“I don’t know how you got the little brat to like you so much,” Rhajat pouted. “I’m not doing anything different from you.”

“Rhaj, calling him a little brat probably doesn’t help things,” Corrin teased.

“I must have forgot. I cast a spell on him so he can actually understand language despite being an infant.”

Corrin raised an eyebrow, more concerned than she let on. “Did you really?”

“No,” Rhajat replied, completely deadpan. “Really though, I don’t get what I’m doing wrong.”

Corrin shrugged, and patted the baby’s back. “I don’t think you’re doing anything wrong, love. Babies are just… strange. For all we know he’ll be terrified of me tomorrow and want you to hold him.”

“I’m sure that will happen,” Rhajat muttered sarcastically.

“It could,” Corrin smiled reassuringly, stroking Rhajat’s cheek with her free hand. “You two actually have a lot on common.”

“You’re kidding,” Rhajat replied. It was a statement, rather than a question.

“Black hair, not outwardly friendly to a lot of people until he gets a chance to warm up to them, seems to really enjoy playing with bones for some strange reason… I’m amazed sometimes he’s not our own blood.”

Rhajat smiled slightly, but then cast her gaze downward. Corrin realized that she probably wasn’t looking forward to being reminded that even though they had spent the past two weeks with the child, for all they knew his birth parents were still alive and out there in the deeprealm somewhere.

Corrin slipped her hand under Rhajat’s chin and tilted her head up to kiss her. “Sorry, Rhaj, I didn’t mean to-“

“It’s fine, I know,” Rhajat sighed, leaning into Corrin’s chest. “I know we might not be able to keep him.”

Corrin rested her head on the top of her head, cradling the baby with one arm and pulling Rhajat closer with the other. “We’ll know for sure one way or another soon. We have to be finding something out about the parents soon.”

Corrin felt Rhajat nod her head against her. They stood there for a few moments longer when Corrin noticed that the baby had finally fallen asleep again. Slowly pulling away from Rhajat, Corrin made her way over to the crib where she tucked the child in, kissing his forehead before going back to bed. By the time she got there, Rhajat was already under the blankets, holding her arms open for Corrin to slip between them. As nice as it was to spend time with the child, it was also nice to cuddle with Rhajat before bed. Corrin nestled in to Rhajat’s tight grip, letting Rhajat lay her head on her chest.

“Corrin?” Rhajat whispered.

“What is it?” Corrin whispered back, pulling an arm free to idly trace her fingers over Rhajat’s back.

“If we… if we get to keep the child, I know we’re not his birth parents. Do you think that will matter to him?”

“How do you mean?”

“Well, what if he loves us less? What if we can’t ever measure up to his real parents, and we just get replaced?”

Corrin paused for a moment before planting a kiss on Rhajat’s head. “When I first came to Hoshido, I admit, I wanted to know more about my blood family. I wanted to be closer to my mother, my sisters, my brother, everyone. I wanted to know everything that I could about this family I never knew, and be a part of it.” Corrin felt Rhajat squeeze her a little bit tighter. “Even after everything, though, aside from Garon, I never stopped thinking about any of my family in Nohr as anything but, well, family. They were and still are misguided, they may not be of my blood, but for nearly all my life, they were the people who cared for me. Who loved me.” Corrin smiled. “I still love them, and I’m certain they feel the same way. Even if Camilla and Elise are the only ones willing to admit it, I truly believe that.”

Rhajat tilted her head, looking up at Corrin, whose breath hitched somewhat on the last sentence. Taking a brief moment to compose herself, she continued. “What I’m trying to say is that when I met my blood family, they never replaced my adopted family. My family just got bigger,” Corrin explained, touching her nose to Rhajat’s. “If he does end up being ours, he’ll be ours. Blood will having nothing to do with it.”

Rhajat smiled, and kissed Corrin, squeezing her to the point where it was becoming difficult to breathe. “I can live with that. Even if I don’t like to share.”

“I know,” Corrin murmured as she nuzzled into Rhajat’s hair, taking in the lavender fragrance. “Do you feel better now?”

“Yeah, a bit.” Rhajat sighed. “Enough to sleep.”

Corrin snuggled closer. Knowing that she had soothed her Rhaj’s worries made her feel wonderful, in spite of the middle of the night wakeup call. “Then I’m glad, love. Good night.”

“Goodnight, Corrin. I love you.”

Corrin planted one last kiss on Rhajat before closing her eyes. “I love you, too.”

\--

Corrin wiped her face off. During the search efforts around the destroyed village, they had found a secluded Nohrian encampment. It wasn’t the largest camp, but was still big enough to put up substantial resistance. Five Nohrian soldiers and their commander had been taken prisoner, and were awaiting judgment. Most of them refused to look at Corrin, though she did not know whether this was out of fear or disgust. The commander spat at her, cursing her for treason.

Corrin sighed. Sometimes she didn’t know why she bothered trying to convince anyone from Nohr that King Garon had gone mad and that she had only “betrayed” Nohr to stop him. It seemed like so many of her former countrymen were perfectly content to remain blind to his atrocities out of some misplaced loyalty for their homeland.

She waved her hand. “Take them to the prison. Maybe with time and patience, we can convince them of the righteousness of our cause.” Nodding, a group of Hoshidans ordered the prisoners to get up, and start making their way back to Corrin’s castle, leaving her alone to examine the camp.

It seemed like a fairly standard encampment that she had come across several times. There was the fire pit, the Nohr banners, the commander’s tent, a larger tent used as a makeshift barracks, and then… another large tent?

That was unusual. Corrin decided to investigate peeking her head inside. At first glance, she didn’t notice anything terribly amiss. It was just a mostly-empty tent aside from some weapons. Then, she considered that it was awfully large if the purpose was just to store extra weapons.

That’s when she noticed the blood on one of the swords.

It was dry, but still looked to be fairly recent. Then, examining the edge of the tent, she noticed that there was no grass. Rather, just earth. _They wouldn’t… even if Garon ordered them they still wouldn’t sink that low…_

Preparing herself for the worst, Corrin made her way to one of the patches of dirt, and began digging with her hands. It didn’t take long until she had dug deep enough to hit flesh. Horrified, she brushed the dirt away to find the body of a man with a recent hacking wound on his neck. Frantically, she dug at another spot on the exposed ground, this time uncovering a woman with a stabwound in her chest.

Her suspicions were confirmed; the Nohrians were using this tent as a makeshift prison and to hold executions. In that moment, she could understand how angry Hinoka or Oboro could get in battle. She couldn’t imagine what possible benefit they could derive from cutting down the villagers they took prisoner, but here they did anyway. Was it some sense of sadism? Some sort of attempt to cover their tracks? Not that there would have been any explanation that could make Corrin feel less disgusted.

Then Corrin remembered that they hadn’t seen a trace of the child’s parents since they began their searching two weeks ago.

Dreading what she might uncover, she pushed more dirt away, excavating the shallow grave, when she saw a woman’s face, and a shock of messy black hair.

He had his mother’s nose.

\--

As Corrin made her way back to her and Rhajat’s quarters, she felt disgusted with herself. How could she possibly think that what she was doing was delivering “good news”? Even more innocent people had died in the attack on the village than she had thought, among them the child’s parents. They were cut down without any sort of explanation and reasoning, and they surely wouldn’t be the last to meet with that fate. How could she think about what her and Rhajat wanted at a time like this? How could she be a good leader, someone for people to look up to, if she exploited tragedy to get what she wanted?

Yet at the same time, there was another voice in her head. Rather than chide her for selfishness, this voice emphasized the importance of selflessness. Right now, there was no way to bring back that child’s parents. The choice was not whether or not to take advantage of a situation, but rather to give a child orphaned by the war a chance at a better life, or to leave them to hope for the best, as so many other children were forced to do.

Her and Rhajat had a chance to make a real difference. A chance to provide a new beginning.

As she entered the door, she saw Rhajat sitting cross-legged on the floor across from the child. They were playing with Rhajat’s bone collection, hitting a skull with a fingerbone. As macabre as the sight was, there was something endearing about it to Corrin.

“Well, hello there,” Rhajat smiled, getting up from the floor to kiss Corrin’s cheek. “You were right. The little one really does take after me.”

Corrin nodded. “I guess I was.”

Rhajat tilted her head. “Is something wrong, Corrin?”

“It wasn’t a good day today. We found a lot more innocent people were killed from that village than we thought.”

“Bastards,” Rhajat growled. “They’ll have to pay for their crimes someday.”

Corrin nodded, not feeling inclined to chide Rhajat for her bloodthirst this time. “That wasn’t all I found out, though,” she continued, looking over to the baby.

Rhajat immediately picked up on her meaning. “They’re dead?”

Corrin nodded. “I’m absolutely certain of it. “

Rhajat, whether out of respect or out of simply not knowing what to say, stood there silently for minutes. She would be the first to break the silence. “That’s… I’m sorry. What does that mean for the kid?”

Corrin felt herself getting excited, and part of her hated herself for it. Yet after what they had been through, and knowing that the child needed the, Corrin was able to push those feelings of guilt aside, for the time being at least. “He needs a home, Rhaj. If I’m being honest, well… I think we’ve done a good job, don’t you?”

Rhajat’s eyes widened. “We’re going to be mothers?”

One look at Rhajat’s face, and any guilt or hesitation Corrin felt evaporated as she was swept up in the realization of what that meant. “I guess we are.”

Rhajat squealed and giggled as Corrin pulled her into an embrace. “What’s so funny, love?”

“Nothing is,” Rhajat beamed. “I’m just giddy that we finally have a child. _Our_ child.”

 _Our child_. Corrin played the phrase over and over in her head, wanting to absorb the meaning of it. The reality of it. “We should really think of a name for him, now,” Corrin grinned.

Rhajat paused for a moment, and started chewing on her nails. “How about Kana?”

“Kana,” Corrin repeated. “I think I like it.”

“So, Kana it is then,” Rhajat grinned, tears beginning to well up her eyes. “Our son, Kana.”

Corrin ran her thumb over Rhajat’s cheek, wiping the tears away. “Our son.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That wraps it up! Still wish I could get a Kana for these two in game, but I enjoyed writing this at least. I hope you enjoyed reading it!
> 
> Feel free to visit aspartame-addict.tumblr.com and send me a request!


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